The Bureau of Product Standard (BPS) under the Department of Trade and Industry has adopted the Philippine Textile Research Institute (PTRI) - Department of Science and Technology (DOST) standard for the performance specification of Philippine tropical fabrics (PTF) for career dress apparel into a Philippine National Standard.

PTF uniforms of the DOST officials and employees

PNS/PTRI 165: 2005 Textiles, is now the official guide in the implementation of RA 9242 known as an "act prescribing the use of Philippine tropical fabrics for uniforms of public officials and employees and for other purposes". This standard is needed in the testing of fiber composition and other properties to determine whether or not the fabric meets the minimum standard requirements for uniform. For composition, all fabrics shall contain at least 5% by weight of abaca, banana and pineapple fibers and 15% by weight of silk. This means the presence of abaca, banana, pineapple and/or silk in blends of cotton and other natural and/or synthetic fibers shall constitute the natural fiber component of the Philippine tropical fabric. PTF are fabrics containing natural fibers produced, spun, woven or knitted and finished in the Philippines.

There are eight fabric characteristics included in the specification requirements for woven PTF for career dress apparel. These are the breaking strength -- the capacity or ability of a fabric to withstand ultimate force required to rupture (tibay ng tela); yarn slippage- the ability of the fabric to resist movement of one or more yarns in a fabric from the original position causing misalignment, spacing, or both, an indication of the tendency of a yarn to slip at a seam (pagtabingi ng sinulid sa tela); dimensional change - the decrease (shrinkage) and/or increase (elongation) in length or width of the fabric due to washing; pilling resistance - the ability of a fabric to resist the formation of pills (himulmul) during washing and wearing; colorfastness to laundering - the ability of a fabric to retain its color or resist transfer of its colorants to any adjacent material during laundering; colorfastness to light - the ability of a fabric to retain its color when exposed to light; colorfastness to perspiration - ability of a fabric to retain its color due to perspiration; and colorfastness to rubbing - ability of a fabric to resist transfer of its colorant to any adjacent material due to rubbing.

Fabrics for career dress apparel are usually categorized as heavyweight (200 g/m² and above) used for pants, suits, blazers, cover-alls, etc.; medium weight (150 g/m² and above but less than 200g/m²) used for smocks, lab coats, dresses, jackets, etc. and lightweight (below 150 g/m²) for tops like. shirts, blouses and dresses.

This specification covers not only the performance requirements for woven PTF for career dress apparel of public officials and employees, but also applies for career dress apparel of officials and employees in the private sector. The specification, however, may not be applicable to career vocational apparel.